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T T X The Sheikh Jarrah Affair:
The Strategic Implications of Jewish Settlement in an
Arab Neighborhood in East Jerusalem
Yitzhak Reiter and Lior Lehrs
Summary
In September 2010 the Supreme Court of Israel rejected Palestinian appeals claiming ownership of 57 housing units in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah in Jerusalem  where dozens of Palestinian families have resided since the days of Jordanian control over East Jerusalem  and accepted the claim of Jewish ownership of the property. This ruling combines with earlier, similar rulings in laying the legal foundation for eviction of Palestinian families from two adjacent compounds and settlement of Jews in the neighborhood. The ruling of September 2010 is another instance in a long series of events involving legal proceedings that address private property rights and are in discord, possibly even in conflict, with Israels political interests.
This paper aims to analyze the strategic implications of Jewish settlement in the heart of the Sheikh Jarrah neighborhood for the State of Israels vital interests. It also aims to examine the various tools available to the authorities in addressing this issue and in conveying to decision makers the need to formulate a policy of action that accords with the interests of the State of Israel.
Jewish settlement in Sheikh Jarrah (in the compounds of Shimon HaTzadik and Nahalat Shimon/Umm Haroun) reflects a growing pattern of Jewish settlement in the heart of Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem based in part on legal proceedings addressing the private property rights of Jews. There have indeed been a few previous instances of reclaimed ownership and possession of Jewish property in an Arab neighborhood in East Jerusalem, but the Sheikh Jarrah affair involves an effort to evict the residents of two entire compounds housing dozens of Palestinian families.
Sheikh Jarrah has historical significance with respect to the national and religious identity of both Palestinians and Jews, and this significance is being invoked in the current conflict between the two sides. The location of the neighborhood between East and West Jerusalem, at the crossroads linking the Old City to Mount Scopus and to the northeast part of the city, amidst consulates and centers of international organizations  grants it geopolitical importance at the municipal and international levels.
In 1956 the government of Jordan in cooperation with the United Nations Relief and Works Association (UNRWA) housed 28 families of Palestinian refugees as tenants in a compound built on lands owned by two Jewish trusts and managed after 1948 by the Jordanian Custodian of Enemy Property. In 1972 the Israeli Custodian General ordered that the property be released and registered under the ownership of the Jewish trusts, who demanded rental payment from the refugee families residing there. Since the 1990s, the two endowments  together with the settlers organization Nahalat Shimon, to which they granted rights to the property  have been filing legal petitions for the eviction of Palestinian tenants as part of a plan for widespread Jewish construction and settlement in Sheikh Jarrah. These proceedings resulted in court rulings that led to the eviction of four Palestinian families that had resided there. Similar legal petitions are pending against additional families. A nearby compound named Umm Haroun has dozens of housing units in which Palestinian refugees reside as protected tenants and which the Custodian General confirmed are also Jewish-owned. Jewish settlement organizations are taking steps to purchase these units, and a first Jewish family has already settled into one of them.
Jewish settlement in Sheikh Jarrah is the work of private entities using legal procedures to reclaim their property rights. Through their actions, these entities are establishing facts on the ground that do not necessarily accord with the vital interests of the State of Israel. This settlement activity has possible strategic implications for Israel in the following areas:
The opening of the 1948 files:
The State of Israel has a vital interest in maintaining a negotiating framework that addresses the issues arising from the events of 1967 and does not open 1948-related issues for discussion. The Israeli interest in relation to refugee property is the formulation of an equation of mutual concession over property  both Palestinian and Jewish  that was lost as a result of the conflict. The reclaiming of Jewish ownership and possession rights in Sheikh Jarrah specifically and in East Jerusalem generally could lead to the opening of the 1948 files, inspiring and even encouraging claims for restitution of refugee properties within West Jerusalem neighborhoods. The inequality between Jews and Arabs on matters involving the return of property abandoned because of the 1948 War is unacceptable to the international community and unexplainable for Israel.
Restricting the governments freedom of action during negotiations
The settlement in Sheikh Jarrah has the potential to restrict the governments freedom of action in its pursuit of a future agreement with the Palestinians and, in so doing, to pose additional obstacles to the advancement of the peace process. Indeed, Jewish settlement in the heart of Arab neighborhoods generally and in Sheikh Jarrah specifically can frustrate the possibility of Israeli-Palestinian compromise over Jerusalem on the basis of division of sovereignty between Jewish and Arab neighborhoods (the Clinton parameters) as part of a final status agreement. Moreover, the eviction of Palestinian families creates an additional focal point for conflict, another in a list of issues within Jerusalem (like Silwan / City of David; Ras El-Amoud, and others) and beyond that disrupt the potential creation of an appropriate environment for advancing negotiations between Israel and the Palestinians.
De-Legitimization of Israel
The eviction of Palestinian families and the settlement of Jews instead in the heart of an Arab neighborhood and under widespread media coverage serve to put additional ammunition in the hands of entities that seek to strike at the legitimacy of Israel in the realm of human rights. This could contribute to the de-legitimization of Israel within global public opinion. The evictions, even if backed by judicial ruling, have a negative impact on the image of Israel among western governments as well, including friendly governments such as the United States. A case such as this highlights the unequal implementation of rights of Jews over property they owned before 1948 while the Arab residents of the city cannot similarly reclaim their property in West Jerusalem specifically or in Israel generally.
Undermining Israels diplomatic achievements on the issue of Jerusalem
Jewish settlement in Sheikh Jarrah could undermine the willingness of the international community and the Palestinian negotiators to accept the existence of Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem and Israeli rights in the Holy Basin. A possible consequence is a Palestinian retreat from the understandings reached in previous rounds of negotiations under the Barak and Olmert administrations regarding Israeli sovereignty over Jewish neighborhoods in East Jerusalem as part of a final status agreement in accordance with the Clinton parameters.
The Sheikh Jarrah affair reinforces the tendency among members of the international community to link the controversy over Jewish settlement in this neighborhood with the controversy over construction in Jewish neighborhoods beyond the Green Line and the question of sovereignty over the Holy Basin of Jerusalem. In addition, these settlement activities have the potential to cause the international community to question Israels ability to control and manage sensitive parts of the city  with its vast variety of religious and other communal interests  in a fair and sensitive manner. The issue of Sheikh Jarrah, therefore, has the potential to undermine Israeli political interests with respect to East Jerusalem.
Adding a focal point of tension in Jerusalem
Jewish settlement in Sheikh Jarrah in conjunction with the eviction of Palestinians adds an additional layer of tension with respect to security and inter-communal relations in East Jerusalem, creates a source of friction and tension within Israel (regular Friday demonstrations), and adds to the burdens of police and security forces. The existence of an additional focal point of conflict and violence in Jerusalem reinforces the negative image of the city.
Options for Government Action
Jewish settlement in the heart of Arab neighborhoods has significant implications for Israels vital interests. This complex reality cannot be left to the care and judgment of private entities. Despite the legal context of an issue involving property rights, the government has the legal and administrative tools to take action in accordance with the interests of the State of Israel. Experience demonstrates that the government had even taken such measures in the past in order to prevent private property proceedings from establishing facts on the ground where the government thought they might undermine Israeli interests.
The main options for government action are the following:
Expropriation of property (Acquisition for Public Purposes under the law) from owners, and their compensation, in order to allow the government to apply its own judgment with respect to the use of the property;
Prevention of the settlement of Jews (and eviction of Palestinians for this purpose) in properties within the heart of Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem  as recommended by past attorney generals of Israel  on the grounds of endangerment of public safety and disruption of public order;
Amendment of the 1970 Legal and Administrative Matters (Regulation) Law [Consolidated Version] to grant the Custodian General discretion regarding the release of property in the future;
Action to halt Jewish housing plans in Arab neighborhoods;
Re-examination of the aid and assistance provided by government authorities to settlement activities within Arab neighborhoods.
We recommend that the government consider formulating a clear policy regarding Jewish settlement in the heart of Arab neighborhoods in East Jerusalem, taking into account the implications of settlement in the neighborhood of Sheikh Jarrah for the interests of the State of Israel, as detailed in this paper, and that the government consider the options for action available to it.
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